Ex-Orange cop avoids jail in Milford twin sex switch case (document)

MILFORD -- Former Orange police Officer Jared Rohrig, who was accused of sexually assaulting a woman he lured to his bedroom by pretending to be his twin brother, pleaded no contest to a lesser charge Friday and was sentenced to three years of probation and 90 days of home confinement.

Rohrig, of 7 Flax Mill Lane, had been originally charged with first-degree sexual assault in September 2009 and faced a possible 10-year mandatory prison sentence if found guilty at trial.

State's Attorney Kevin Lawlor revoked the sexual assault charge Friday, and Rohrig pleaded no contest to first-degree unlawful restraint and criminal impersonation. If a plea had not been entered the trial would have begun in 90 days.

Superior Court Judge Richard Arnold said Rohrig's plea is essentially a guilty admission, and he sentenced him to a suspended five-year prison term. He will be on probation for three years.

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During the 90-day home confinement, Rohrig may go to church and medical appointments, and must wear an electronic monitoring bracelet.

He also has to pay the $3,000 costs.

Lawlor said the victim fully agreed with the plea agreement, and wants to move on with her life.

"Given all the facts and circumstances and feelings of the complainant, it was an appropriate resolution," Lawlor said. "She made her feelings very clear. It was a compromise."

Lawlor said the plea agreement is based on the fact the state would have "difficulty at trial proving some of the elements of the crime."

Rohrig's attorney, Edward J. Gavin of Bridgeport, said despite Rohrig avoiding jail time it's still a "tough day for him."

"It was an offer that was really difficult to turn down," Gavin said.

Gavin said Rohrig would only accept a plea that did not require him to register as a sex offender.

"Unlawful restraint is a not a sex charge," Gavin said. "Jared completely denied he ever sexually assaulted her and this plea proves that. Also there will be no sex offender probation or sex offender registration. He can move on with his life."

During sentencing Arnold kept using the word "unusual" to describe the case. He said typically sexual assaults are violent or committed by a family member, but that didn't happen here.

"Hopefully, the victim can move forward now. ... Hopefully you can turn your life around and do something positive for the community," Arnold told Rohrig.

Before Rohrig walked out of the courtroom, Arnold told him while "you've made bad choices in your life," one of the best decisions he made was hiring Gavin. Arnold also praised Lawlor for constantly keeping in touch with the victim and honoring her feelings.

Lawlor said the victim could not be present Friday because she was traveling. A Milford Rape Crisis Center victim advocate read a prepared statement from the victim, including a Sept. 9, 2009, journal entry she made a few months after the July 18, 2009, incident.

The victim wrote that she did not want to "spend any more time on this drama." The incident left her feeling "worried, scared, depressed, anxious and paranoid." She said she just wanted to "look forward."

In the journal, the victim wrote that she routinely woke up at 3 a.m. afraid she was pregnant. She also wrote about the "intense anxiety" she felt, and was "petrified" to be left alone.

She wrote that she was in an elevator with a man and was afraid he'd hurt her.

Police said Rohrig pretended to be his twin in order to dupe the woman into having sex with him. The woman came to the Rohrigs' home late July 18, 2009, to see Joseph Rohrig. Joseph told police that when she arrived, he told Jared that he could hang out with her, but to tell her he was in his room, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. Jared instead pretended to be Joseph and hung out with the woman in a hot tub before bringing her to his bed, police said.

The woman told police that during sex she realized she was with Jared and not Joseph when she noticed the man did not have a tattoo of a cowboy on his buttocks. She told police that when she tried to leave, she was forced back onto the bed with a pillow over her face and Jared continued the sexual encounter against her will, according to the affidavit.

In September 2009, Jared Rohrig resigned from his post as a probationary officer with the Orange Police Department.

Arnold's sentence barred Rohrig from contacting the victim for 50 years. Rohrig must also pay $220 for court costs.

"Given all that has been discussed it's not an unfair resolution of this case, it's just unusual circumstances," Arnold said.